The invention relates to a tailgate warning system. More particularly, the invention relates to a system for warning the driver of a vehicle with the system installed that another vehicle is driving dangerously close behind the vehicle, or that the vehicle is tailgating another vehicle located immediately in front of the vehicle. The system can report the tailgating incident to a centralized computer system for risk assessment purposes.
As highway speeds increase, the potential for disaster also increases. At a given speed, the closer the vehicles get together the less time there is to avoid an accident. Also, as the speed increases, the available reaction time decreases.
Skilled drivers know that safety requires that they maintain a safe following distance of at least two or three seconds between their vehicle and a vehicle they are following. Despite the well known dangers, tailgating is a prevalent problem. In particular, many people are habitual tailgaters. They often leave one second or less between them and vehicles immediately in front. This practice is an invitation for disaster.
Insurance companies employ a variety of factors to assess the relative risk of their insured drivers and determine appropriate insurance premiums for them. In this regard, it is undeniable that people who do not tailgate are considerably less likely to be involved in automobile collisions than people who habitually tailgate. Unfortunately, it is virtually impossible for insurance companies to distinguish those drivers who engage in unsafe tailgating from those drivers who consistently maintain a safe driving distance.
Various systems have been proposed that monitor the separation of vehicles or warn a driver about a tailgating condition. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,397 to Sindle discloses an ultrasonic distance detection system for vehicles. U.S. Pat. No. 6,177,866 to O'Connell discloses a tailgate warning system. U.S. Pat. No. 6,263,282 to Vallancourt discloses a system and method for warning of dangerous driving conditions. U.S. Pat. No. 5,828,319 to Tonkin et al. discloses a motor vehicle display system and ranging device. U.S. Pat. No. 6,590,495 to Behbehani discloses an automobile distance warning and alarm system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,627,510 to Yuan discloses a vehicular safety distance alarm system. U.S. Pat. No. 6,268,804 to Janky et al. discloses a dynamic monitoring of vehicle separation. U.S. Pat. No. 5,235,316 to Qualizza discloses a vehicle collision avoidance system.
While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose employed, or for general use, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as disclosed hereafter.